Evolve: Chapter 5 Part 1

Chapter 5

Nexyl

Nexyl was busy in the hidden study late at night. His duties were postponed another day considering his mother was worried about him staying up for quite a few days straight. She wanted to make sure he had enough sleep and was well rested.

He was aware he worked better when he was rested and during the day, but given the hour of the night and his obsession to learning as much as Venril had known already, he was determined and had a lot of energy for studying it seemed. However, all that studying didn’t necessarily keep him in his normal beautician state. His long platinum blond hair was messy and his garments were unevenly buttoned. He didn’t care. He was too wrapped up into learning about Dragons and magic. 

He had found a different magic book, one that was able to manipulative minds and ideals to the wielder's bidding. He was also intrigued it worked on anything, object and living creature. He tested it on a lonely ant who followed his finger in the direction it went and obeyed his every command. He then told the ant to kill itself and it obeyed obediently, traveling up the table’s legs and up the wax shaft of the candle before traveling into the flame. He was surprised the spell worked so well but he did realize that the ant was a small creature, anything larger may be more reluctant. He then decided to test the theory on something bigger. 

He saw a Werecat cub traveling in the hallway trying to catch itself a mouse. It seemed that Venril wasn’t the only one who could find this hidden chamber. The Werecats must have known of its existence the more they hunted for mice. A sick habit, to eat another creature for the sake of food. He was an herbivore and never once ate meat. He believed the land was enough to provide for oneself, not the sake of another living being. He understood that it was a necessity in most creatures, but he did not understand why you needed meat to survive. Plants provided enough nutrition and protein to survive so why did some creatures need meat to survive? What was so special about it? Certainly he was not going to try it but he was willing to wager on a creature’s life for the sake of proving who was the strongest. 

He walked out to the hallway and cleared his throat, the echo of his voice spooking the little cub as it hid behind a corner, allowing the mice to live and be set free from its grasp. 

“Werecat. This is a restricted area. Only the royal family shall be allowed entrance into its halls.” He ordered sounding stern with the cub. 

The Werecat, young and possibly resembling a five-year-old child, looked at Nexyl with scared, cautious eyes. He did, however, understand that he was not allowed to speak to the Prince so kindly, especially not this prince. Nexyl was not as kind to his family as Venril was, he could tell that by scent. He feared Nexyl just as he feared getting in trouble for being down there playing with his dinner.

“Well young cub, what do you have to say?” Nexyl asked, trying to be polite even though disgust ran through his veins at the very sight of the cub.

“I-I’m sorry...” He stuttered softly. “It won’t happen again.” He said sadly.

“Very well.” Nexyl said before he decided to try the spell out on the cub. He raised out his hand to the cub who shook in fear, smelling something off from the Elf’s hand. Nexyl chanted the text for the manipulation spell and the cub’s eyes grew hazy and cold. Nexyl’s hand lowered when the cat was under his spell and he smiled. 

“Come here.” Nexyl ordered, the cub obeying obediently. 

The young cub stood in front of Nexyl, straight and tall for its master. His tail wagging behind him.

Nexyl grew annoyed with the tail and decided to test his commands. He pulled out a dagger from his pocket and smiled. “Now, I order you to cut off half of your tail. You all look the same to me and it is difficult to tell you apart.” He said as he handed the dagger to the cub.

The cub took it, shaking reluctantly, fearing for its tail to be cut off. He sat down and grabbed his tail, holding it straight on the floor as his eyes started to cry. “But master...it is my tail...” He said hoping to change his master’s mind. “It is connected to my spine is it not? I don’t think I can.” The cub said, his voice shaking as much as his body was in fear. The dagger in his hand was shaking so much, Nexyl thought that the cub was going to resist and fight back or not have the courage to do it. 

“Reluctant are we? Guess the spell is impervious to freewill even while under control.” Nexyl sighed. “I will be nice and relieve you of the pain. It will be like docking a tail on dogs.” He then used some magic to relieve the pain in the animals tail in the area where the line should be drawn. “Cut there. There will be no pain and I will close the wound up myself.” He said still ordering the cub to do it. 

The cub gulped in fear and kept his tail still as he hastily cut his own tail off in half where the dock line was. Tears fell down his face at the lost of his tail. There was blood but no pain as Nexyl had described. The cat was crying in fear and sadness for the lost of his tail but he was told that with milk it grows back in Werecats. That thought of having his tail again gave him some hope of having it again and Nexyl could see it in his eyes. The cub was hugged his tail to tell it everything was going to be alright and that it will have its friend back. 

“Good. Now do not drink milk unless I tell you so. I know how it works for you creatures. You are now my slave, this marks proof of that, got it?” Nexyl said, hate and anger in his eyes, more from the fact that he actually felt a little bit of guilt in him after seeing the pain in the cub’s face. “Do not disobey me again cub.” He said to the cub who nodded, his tears slowly fading but the blood did not. 

Nexyl closed the wound up with his magic and the blood stopped but the stain remained on the floor. “Do you have a name cub?” He asked, not willing to call the Werecat “cub” anymore and for some reason feeling oddly attached to the little creature despite his hatred for all things that was not of Elven make.

“We aren’t given names.” He said honestly.

“Then how do you tell each other apart?” Nexyl said quite unamused and annoyed at such simple-minded creatures who felt no sense in creating an identity for themselves even with something as simple as a name. 

“By scent. Our mother does not name us, she knows us individually by scent.” 

“Fine then. I shall give you a name. From now on you refer to me as Master or Master Nexyl. You will be named Múldir meaning “Slave”. Do not forget it.” He said, flipping his long hair from the side of his face back behind him before walking back into the chamber to continue his studies. 

The cub’s eyes returned to normal. He had a master, finally. Once named Werecats were forever pets to their masters, leaving the manipulation spell pointless. He was loyal by name alone, and despite his feelings for this horrible man, he still was grateful to Nexyl for even bothering to give him a name rather than forcing him under a spell forever. That meant that Nexyl was willing to own him without the need of a spell. Múldir was free from the spell but now a pet to Nexyl. He didn’t like being this Elf’s pet but he was finally owned which is what any Werecat cub has dreamed of since their parents told them that being loved is as great as giving love. However, this also meant he had to abide by this man’s wishes, probably unable to return home, to his parents or his siblings. He was locked away as a slave, with a name that meant slave. A horrid irony. He wasn’t sure about what he thought of that. He should be grateful regardless of the name and its meaning or his relationship with the owner who named him, but he wasn’t, at least not entirely. He knew if the time needed him to go against his master, he would. He was too strong-willed to be tied down to someone even if the moralities of his owner was twisted. 

He picked up the remaining tip of his tail and went to Nexyl. He was still afraid of Nexyl, worried that he wouldn’t understand his request let alone wish to be disturb but he had to keep his tail. It was a part of him and and he wanted to remember this day and what Nexyl did to him, so he would know who did this to him. He didn’t want to forget cutting off his tail or who made him do it by force. He wanted that memory and he knew that time would not give that to him. Not like this. 

“Umm Master.” He asked softly.

“What is it?” Nexyl said not looking up from his book and surprisingly not sounding quite upset from being disturbed. 

“Could you put a spell on this part of my tail to keep it from deteriorating over time? I would like to keep it as a reminder of my obedience to you as your slave.” He asked worried of Nexyl’s response.

Nexyl looked up and at the tail and then smiled. “Good idea. It shall remind you of where you belong and to never question me, that this is the hold I have on you, much like a collar it would seem.” He said before he looked at a spell to preserve life and limbs. He put the spell on the tail, it not alive but forever in tact as it was in that moment. 

Múldir smiled and wrapped the tail around his waste, it long enough for him to wear it as a belt with enough room to grow into. Nexyl was proud his little pet was so wise to know where he stood in comparison and that his spell would forever remain in check, not realizing that by giving the cub a name broke it as immediately as it was made. 

“Now, go upstairs and fetch me some light food and some water. Be quick and be sneaky about it. I have not made it known to my subjects that you are my pet as of now. There should be some tomato basil soup on a pot, go bring me a bowl. Take that portal there. It leads to the closet of my room. You may not be able to enter into it from the other side so you will have to find your way back outside or however else you got in. Understood?” He ordered.

“Yes sir!” Múldir responded as he went through the portal and went to the kitchen. Using his claws and the ceiling as his means of sneaking around, the shadows close at hand to aid him in his quest. He halted when he saw a guard or a servant passing by or standing by a door of great importance. He wondered about the guards. Elves were naturally gifted in strength and skill, why would they need guards for protection when they could obviously protect themselves. He made it to the kitchen, the staff not at hand so late in the night. He found the pot and jumped down from the ceiling, grabbing a bowl of soup from off the counter and a glass and pitcher of water, the jug was heavy for him but he was able to manage, being stronger than the average child. He placed the pitcher of water on his head and balanced it as he walked sneakily back to the portal in Nexyl’s room. He was almost caught by a guard who noticed the child but simply thought he was a statue as Múldir stood still. He finally left the guards side when the guard looked the other away. Múldir could tell the guard was nervous about a small child staring at him for so long so he obviously turned and looked away only to notice the statue was gone when he checked again, confusing him and wondering if working so late at night was playing tricks on his eyes. 

He finally made it back to Nexyl’s room, eyeing the portal for something, looking at it before he sniffed it, wondering if he could smell Nexyl through it. The tail he had around his waist started to glow, the magic in the portal obviously having an affect on it as it was still under Nexyl’s spell, allowing him to pass through again despite Nexyl’s predictions.

He smiled at his master when he returned through the portal, Nexyl was confused about how the child did such a thing but when he noticed the tail around the cub’s waist glowing he understood that any spell he created was still a part of him which allowed those under his spells to pass through. Interesting, he thought but thankful it was a quicker way to return to him than for the cub to have to find his way around on his own searching for another way in. 

“Thank you Múldir.” He said noticing that the cub smiled even more when his name was called by his master. Nexyl stared at the cub and realized that Venril was right, Werecats were cute but it wasn’t because they were furry or because of their features. He really did not like the cats personally, but for some reason this little cub was different. He couldn’t understand what it was, but this cub was certainly undeniably happy for a slave. Who would be happy about being forced under a spell for the sake of abiding by someone’s wishes? Was it the spell’s fault this child was so pleased to be with him or was it because for the first time in his life, he had someone he could talk to openly about his thoughts without needing to sound proper or polite. He could order this cub around and make it do whatever he wished, and he didn’t have to force his own self to be something he was not. He was honest with the cub, and the cub was obviously being honest with him. His smile was clear of that.

“If you are tired Múldir, you may rest. But wake up when I call in case I need anything.” He said still ordering the cat around but not as harshly as before.

“Yes master.” He said with a smile before he laid down on the floor stretched out and started to sleep. Again he seemed cute to Nexyl but this time more amusingly than pure cuteness. He was a strange cat indeed, a lightly tan colored cat with striking black spots resembling that of a Serval, yet he knew that this cat was more of a domestic cat than a wild one. His ears were striped with thick horizontal, black markings. He looked to be a Savannah. Nexyl knew that the Savannah type of Werecats were friendly and loyal like dogs, affectionate, and grew up to be large creatures with long legs, especially the males. If trained right and exercised daily, this little cub would turn into a bodyguard for Nexyl which was perfect for him. He could not only have the cub do his biding for him but also fight his battles as well as his main protector.  Not to mention he could finally have a guard he could openly discuss his problems and secrets to. How long did Werecats grow? The cub was about five-years-old in form but possibly twenty in years. Which meant that they aged every four years. By the time the cat was twenty-five in form, it would take the cat a hundred years to grow. A century was enough time, especially since Nexyl was not open to starting a war with Reydothe at that moment in time. He needed time and what a better way to do so when his main protector was at his peak in strength.  

Nexyl went back to his studies as he occasionally grazed on his dinner Múldir brought for him. It was cold but with tomato soup, it was fine. He was just happy to have something. Hopefully soon he could go to bed. he questioned where the cub would sleep. He didn’t want the cat in his bed nor on his furniture. He had to make preparations so he wouldn’t seem cold-hearted with the creature around his servants or brother. Venril. He thought of Venril for a bit as he ate, wondering what he would think of when witnessing the sight of the tail. Would he lie to his brother and say the cub had an accident and he did all he could to make sure the cat wasn’t in any pain and with a sense of guilt adopted the poor thing. It was possible but how would it sound. Would Venril see through his lies or was he still too naive to think poorly of his brother, who had many secrets he kept, especially from his own twin. It was obvious he wasn’t able to trust his brother and his brother’s moralities and their judgment against him. He didn’t need that kind of pressure, not even from his brother. He feared that he might one day have to rid his brother from this world if it meant standing against him and his ideals he had against the creatures uprising against him and his kingdom. He would not allow that to happen, not as long as he was alive and still Prince of Reydothe.